Pobeda raises tariffs

Roskomnadzor and the courts revealed numerous violations in the work of the low-cost airline. However, the airline is in no hurry to fix the mistakes

A high-profile story occurred at the beginning of the month, when airline employees handed over a family with a baby to the police. The reason was the attempt of the parents to reunite on board the aircraft without paying extra for the choice of seats.

As Alena Marchenko, a participant in the incident, said on social networks, she was ready not only to pay extra, but also to overpay for the right places, but she could not do it.

“When I bought tickets, I couldn’t choose two seats next to each other through the computer, I was ready to pay 10 times more for them, believe me. Then I tried to do it by phone, but after spending about 30 euros on calls, I got a little desperate and thought that most likely this could be sorted out one way or another at the front desk, ”wrote the mother of a two-month-old child.

According to Marchenko, an airport employee at the check-in desk advised her to solve the problem on the plane.

“I asked this as soon as I got on the plane and got a negative answer. Even later, when they persuaded me to leave for my place, I offered to buy these places, at any rate, but at that moment the Pobeda company no longer wanted my money and communicated with the police with much greater joy, ”added the woman.

After the story circulated on the Internet, the airline said that on Pobeda flights, a child under 12 years old must get a seat next to one of the parents or with an accompanying person without charging additional fees.

“This is the only exception to the rule, the rest of the categories of passengers use the airline’s paid service for choosing a seat to be guaranteed a specific seat in the cabin,” the Pobeda press service said.

Meanwhile, since July 19, the low-cost airline has raised tariffs for the choice of neighboring places. If earlier only one of the passengers had to pay an additional fee for this service, now the surcharge will be charged from both who wish to fly in pairs

In the same way, namely with the intention to raise tariffs, the airline reacted to the recent decision of the Moscow Arbitration Court. The court ruled that Pobeda had no right to demand payment for a handbag in the form of a backpack. The decision was based on the order of Rostransnadzor to change the rules for carrying hand luggage in the cabin of the airline's aircraft.

According to its own rules, Pobeda obliges passengers to pay for the carriage of personal belongings on board, with the exception of women's bags and men's briefcases. At the same time, the company “rejects” backpacks even the size of a cosmetic bag and forces them to pay 2,000 rubles extra for their transportation.

At a court hearing, a representative of the low-cost airline stated the need to “separate a handbag and a backpack,” since the Federal Aviation Rules “do not say anything about backpacks.” The judge called it a "game of wording" and noted that such restrictions are "wrong even from a philistine point of view."

Now the company is threatening to raise base fares by 1,000 rubles if a higher authority obliges the company to let people with bags in the form of backpacks on board the plane for free.

The court ruling had no effect on the principles of work of Pobeda. I was “lucky” to be convinced of this personally, when I was returning the day before on a flight from Sochi.

When buying a ticket to the base fare of 5609 rubles, I immediately had to pay about another thousand and a half for the opportunity to check in more than 10 kg. As a result, the cost of a ticket for the so-called low-cost airline was hardly lower than that of S7.

The troubles began already at the check-in desks, where I was categorically told that with a bag in the form of a backpack I would not get on board until I paid 2 thousand. Explanations that only a passport, tickets, telephone and money can fit in it did not cause any reaction from the company's personnel, except for aggression. During boarding, I was stopped by two Pobeda officers.

They demanded 2,000 for the carriage of a handbag with two straps, weighing 1.5 kg. The airline made similar claims against two other passengers. It got to the point of threatening to hand us over to the police and take us off the flight for refusing to follow rules devoid of common sense. In the end, the bags still managed to "recapture". Even without the police.

But, as it seems, no courts and instances are able to stop Pobeda in its intention to cash in on passengers. On July 19, Rospotrebnadzor revealed another violation of the law by the airline, which takes 2-3% commission from ticket buyers when paying with a bank card. Now the department invites citizens to file a complaint with the airline for further litigation.

Despite all the illegal extortions, Pobeda continues to be called a low-cost airline. At the same time, the generous tariffs of 999 rubles, which the airline was proud of, also seem to be a thing of the past. You can fly with Pobeda at this price only from Moscow to Nalchik and from Nalchik to Moscow, and only in the last week of November. In other cases, the cost of the base tariff starts at 1599 rubles. At the same time, you need to be prepared for all sorts of fees at the airport: up to 35 euros for purchases from Duty Free, 2000 rubles for packages with any content not prohibited for transportation, for products in a separate package (despite the fact that it is not even possible to purchase on Pobeda aircraft for a fee food and drinks), handbags, backpacks and more. At best, you will have to overpay twice, if not three times.